Southern Nazarene tips off the 2010-11 season tonight at the Texas Roadhouse Classic hosted by Lindenwood (Mo.) in St. Charles, Mo. SNU will play Lindenwood-Belleville at 6 p.m. Live coverage of the classic can be found at at the Lindenwood Athletics Site. Here is a preview of the upcoming season.
There are no guarantees in the Sooner Athletic Conference and every coach, including Southern Nazarene University Head Coach for Men's Basketball Adam Bohac, will tell you the same.
Only one thing is guaranteed for Crimson Storm this season.
All five starters from last year's elite eight run in the NAIA National Tournament return for the Crimson Storm and nearly the whole 2009-10 team returns for the 2010-11 season. SNU loses just two players from last year who played more than 10 games. Southern Nazarene gets back an All-American first team selection and Co-Newcomer of the Year in the SAC and an All-SAC choice as well. Add three NCAA Division I transfers and the hype machine kicks on automatically.
Needless to say, expectations will be high on campus.
The Crimson Storm are coming off a year in they won 27 games, the most since the 2006-07 season, and reached the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Tournament since 1998. SNU finished second in the Sooner Athletic Conference regular season at 19-3 and had two players named All-SAC.
Backcourt
One of those players returning also received NAIA All-American first team honors as a junior. Xavier Alexander was third in the conference in scoring (17.7 ppg.) and fourth in field goal percentage (.552). The senior guard was also named to the Sporting News Magazine Preseason All-American first team for the 2010-11 season. Alexander also averaged 6.6 rebounds per game and 3.3 assists per game.
Joining Alexander is an All-SAC second team choice in A.J. Thomas. The transfer from Walters State was second on the team in scoring at 13.4 points per game and that also earned him an honorable mention for NAIA All-American. Thomas also led the team in assists at 4.1 per game, steals at 1.6 per game and 3-pointers made with 75.
Kyle Boen, who started 21 games last year for the Crimson, returns for his senior season after he averaged 4.1 points per game and 2.0 boards a game. Senior Clement N'Gom and juniors Daniel White and Adrian Hunter also return as reserves for the Crimson Storm. All three played in at least 30 games last year. White averaged 6.7 points and 3.5 boards a game while averaging 16.3 minutes a game. Hunter played in all 35 games last year, coming off the bench. He averaged 18.3 minutes a game 3.5 points per game. Hunter also shot 78.9 percent from the free-throw line. N'Gom played in 30 games last season, averaging 2.2 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.
SNU got big news in the summer that former Putnam City High standout C.J. Henry would be transferring to Southern Nazarene from Kansas. Henry played in 13 games for the Jayhawks in the 2009-10 season while battling through injuries that also forced a redshirt season at Memphis. Henry was a Super 5 pick at Putnam City.
The backcourt should be loaded with plenty of athletic talent. Speed will be the key and don't surprised if the Crimson Storm see a lot of zone defense this season.
Frontcourt
The Crimson Storm also return two starters in the post in Jeremy Lightfoot and Jon West. Lightfoot comes back for his senior season after starting 24 games last season. He was fourth on the team in scoring at 9.5 points a game and shot 60.5 percent (124-205) from the field. Lightfoot also averaged 5.2 boards a game and totaled 26 blocks and 22 steals. West played in 31 games last year, starting 18 as a sophomore. He averaged 7.5 points and 4.8 rebounds a game.
McGloster, a 6-7 forward, spent his last two seasons at Houston, playing in 44 games across the 2007-08 and 08-09 seasons. McGloster ranked fourth on the team with seven blocks as a freshman for the Cougars. The Newark, N.J. native prepped at Malcom X Shabazz where he was a two-time Watchung Conference Player of the Year. He averaged 21 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocks a game as a senior. He led the Bulldogs to a state title as a junior and was a nominee for the 2006 McDonald's All-American Team.
Milosevic, also a 6-7 forward, makes his way to Bethany after playing one season at Valparaiso. He played in 17 games as a sophomore for the Crusaders, averaging 5.5 minutes a game and shot 47.1 percent from the field. Milosevic transferred to Valpo after playing the 2008-09 season for Yuba College (Calif.) where he averaged 9.5 points and seven boards as a freshman for the 49ers after suffering from a burst appendix in the first semester.
Shane Callaghan also returns for SNU after playing in 27 games last year. He averaged 7.8 minutes and 2.6 points a game last season.
Schedule
The conference schedule will be tough enough as is, but the Crimson Storm have exactly schedule cupcakes either in the pre-SAC schedule. SNU kicks off the season at the Lion Pride Classic at Lindenwoood (Mo.), Nov. 5-6. SNU plays Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.) to open the season before playing host Lindenwood Nov. 6. Lindenwood received votes in the final poll of the 2009-10 season.
SNU hosts Avila (Mo.) in the hope opener Nov. 12 before playing at Central Oklahoma in an exhibition Nov. 16. The Crimson Storm host Evangel (Mo.) Nov. 19 before hosting the Nazarene Thanksgiving Classic Nov. 26-27 in the Sawyer Center. The classic is a true tournament format and features four Nazarene schools, including 2010 NAIA National Tournament participant Olivet Nazarene, Trevecca Nazarene that has made several tournament appearances over the past years and former NAIA Division II, now Division I, powerhouse MidAmerica Nazarene.
The Crimson Storm don't waste anytime getting to the game that everyone has circled on the calendar and not just those in Shawnee and Bethany. Sooner Athletic Conference play kicks off in the Sawyer Center with SNU hosts the defending national champion Oklahoma Baptist, Dec. 2.
The rest of the conference season features both long road trips and long home stands throughout the year. After the contest with OBU, SNU hits the road for back-to-back games before a New Year's Day bash with Oklahoma Christian at home. The Crimson Storm then hit the road for arguably its toughest road tests of the year with not only the teams they play but how far. SNU is at Northwestern Oklahoma State, Lubbock Christian, Wayland Baptist, and caps the four-game trip at Oklahoma City, Jan. 13. SNU then hosts Mid-America Christian, John Brown, Rogers State and St. Gregory's for four straight home games.
A return trip to Shawnee and OBU is set for Jan. 29 and is a break between home stands as the Crimson Storm host USAO, Wayland Baptist, Lubbock Christian and Northwestern before hitting the road for the final time. SNU ends the regular season by hosting Oklahoma City, Feb. 26.
The Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament runs Mar. 3-5 at Oklahoma City and the NAIA National Tournament is Mar. 16-22 at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
